'Once Upon a Mattress' proves to be entertaining favorite

by Beka Rutledge, entertainment editor

 

The classic story of “The Princess and the Pea” takes on a hilarious twist in “Once Upon a Mattress.”

“Once Upon a Mattress,” which was staged April 18-April 20, was the first SPC theatre production since the completion of construction on the Fine Arts Building. The play was a huge hit.

Supposedly, this is the true tale of the princess and the pea, as announced by the minstrel, played by Leon Eldridge, who is extremely talented with his voice. As the original story goes, the prince is looking for a princess who he may marry. His mother wants the girl he marries to be a true princess. Therefore, she comes up with many tests to see if the girl is a genuine princess.

However, in this story, it seems as if Queen Aggravain, played by Nicole Keeling, cannot cut the apron strings with the submissive Prince Dauntless, played by Oscar Cabrera. She keeps a tight hold upon her darling son, and the tests she puts the girls through are impossible.

This causes some worry for Sir Harry and Lady Larken, played by Nathan Gibson and Marissa Eisenhauer. The reason for their anxiety is because no one in the kingdom can be married until after the prince is wed, and they have just found out that Lady Larken is going to have a baby. Both of these actors are very talented in both acting and singing.

After many auditions for princess, Princess Winnifred arrives. She is from the swamps and makes quite an impression on the kingdom when she arrives by swimming the moat. Even the mute King Sextimus is impressed.

Queen Aggravain is quite a tyrant in this play and controls most everyone. There is a saying in the kingdom that “The king shall not speak until the mouse devours the hawk.” This is not understood until the very end of the play.

Overall, it was extremely entertaining. The cast was picked with great accuracy. The part of Princess Winnifred, the last princess who comes to win marriage to the prince, was played very well by Whitney Wilson. Robert Sullivan, who plays King Sextimus, was hilarious, even though for most of the play he could not speak.

A couple of the smaller parts that impressed me were the role of The Jester, played by Brian Benavides, and the role of Nightingale of Smarkand, played by Amanda Espinoza. Benavides captured everyone’s attention and heart with the solo “Very Soft Shoes.” The Nightingale was hired as a plot of the queen to help Princess Winnifred fall asleep, but instead the bird’s singing was anything but soft and lulling. But what made the part unforgettable were the comical body movements of Espinoza.

The music, which was done by some of SPC’s very own staff and students, helped make the play the success that it was. It was beautifully done and set the tone for each scene.

I, along with many others, enjoyed this play very much and can’t wait to see what the Fine Arts Department and the theatre program have in store for the fall semester.

Photo by Brenda Cuellar/Plainsman Press